Causes of workplace violence against medical staff as perceived by physicians and nurses in Jordanian public hospitals

Purpose: Workplace violence against medical staff has become an endemic problem in the healthcare sector in Jordan. This study investigates the perceived main causes of workplace violence (medical staff, administrative, patients, patient's escorts and legislative) against physicians and nurses in public hospitals. Design/methodology/approach: A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from a convenient random sample of 334 physicians and nurses employed in Jordanian public hospitals. Descriptive statistics and analysis of variance were used to answer questions and test hypotheses. Findings: Findings indicated that the practice of the causes of workplace violence behaviors assessed by the participants is at a moderate level in Jordanian public hospitals with a mean value of 3.26. The causes of violence were reported as most causative to least causative: patient escort (M = 3.60), legislative (M = 3.56), patients (M = 3.40), administrative (M = 3.16) and medical staff related (M = 2.74), respectively. Analysis showed statistical differences in the participants' attitudes toward the causes of workplace violence behaviors due to their gender, job title, education level, experience and income. Practical implications: This study has a significant practical contribution in providing information about the causes of workplace violence that will help health policymakers and hospital administrators to deter violence against medical staff. To reduce or eliminate the potential causes of violence, several actions can be taken, such as criminalizing violent behaviors, managing work pressure, staff shortages, developing comfortable and secure medical treatment settings, training the medical staff on aggression and stress management, and enhancing their communication skills with patients and their escorts. Findings also highlight the need for hospital management to develop protocols for reporting and dealing with workplace violence. Originality/value: This is one of the first studies in the Arab context that examines the causes of workplace violence against medical staff